In The Vegetable Garden This February

Here are your top February vegetable-garden tips 🥕🌱 It’s a planning & gentle-action month — don’t rush, but don’t snooze either.

🌱 Start sowing (indoors or under cover)

On a bright windowsill, greenhouse, or in a cold frame:

• Tomatoes, peppers, aubergines (especially if you have a long growing season)

• Early peas (varieties like ‘Meteor’)

• Lettuce, salad leaves, spinach

• Broad beans (great undercover this month)

Go slow — light levels are still low, so avoid overcrowding seedlings.

🥔 Chit your potatoes

• Set seed potatoes somewhere cool, light, and frost-free.

• Aim for short, sturdy shoots — they’ll be ready to plant next month.

🧄 Plant if soil allows

If the ground isn’t frozen or waterlogged:

• Garlic

• Shallots

• Onion sets (best in milder areas or under cover)

🛠️ Prep the soil

• Dig over empty beds if the soil is workable.

• Add well-rotted manure or compost — don’t dig if it’s soggy.

• Cover beds with cardboard, plastic, or fleece to warm the soil early.

❄️ Protect & maintain

• Keep fleece or cloches handy for cold snaps.

• Check overwintering crops (leeks, kale, sprouts) and harvest little and often.

• Vent greenhouses on mild days to reduce mould.

🐌 Pests & hygiene

• Remove slug hideouts (pots, boards).

• Clean seed trays, pots, and tools to prevent disease.

• Check stored crops (potatoes, onions) for rot.

📋 Plan like a pro

• Finalise your crop rotation.

• Purchase seeds early — popular varieties sell out fast.

• Decide where you’ll need netting later (carrots, brassicas).

🌤️ Patience is key

February teases spring, but frost can still bite.
If in doubt: wait a week. The soil knows when it’s ready.